Chapter
12.12
Beer Booze & Bubbly
Is
it a sin to drink alcohol? – Didn’t Jesus drink wine? Symbolism in the Bible
I
only drink on two occasions: When I am
with friends, and when I am alone
First
Word
I
would like begin by saying that most of the time we really do not know if
the wine mentioned in the Bible was alcoholic or not; we do know that new wine was
not. Wine was sometimes mixed with
spices and other drinks to increase its strength. Wine has healing properties
as today we know that alcohol kills germs.[1]
The idea here is to explore what God’s
word has to say about “drinking” based on the Old Covenant as well as the New Covenant under which we now live. Wine in general in the scriptures is SYMBOLIC of health and Fruitfulness,[2] Happiness,[3] prosperity,[4] abundance,[5] safety,[6] and spiritual blessings;[7] this symbolism is woven throughout the Old
Testament.
Jesus
turned water into wine. It must
be noted here that in my observation, Jesus never used his authority for
himself or his disciples; all his miracles benefited others. The
turning of water into wine was Christ’s first recorded miracle.[8] Wine was a part of their culture; if drinking
wine was against God’s statutes, Jesus would not have been a part of this
wedding celebration. Jesus only did the
works of the Father.[9] At this point, you are thinking this wine was non-alcoholic;
not
so.[10]
Winebibber
Jesus
drank wine and they called Him a winebibber,[11]
John the Baptist did not drink wine because he had taken the vow of the Nasserite and they said he has
a demon. This Nasserite oath could be for a month, a
year or forever. John’s oath was
forever; he could not even touch a raisin nor cut his hair. Jesus also took the Nasserite vow, but it was only for a specific time. So Jesus was trained as a Nasserite and fully
understood the symbolism and the potency of wine.[12]
Partake in
everything in moderation; vanilla extract is good, but I don’t
want to drink a cup of it. Water can
give life, but too much can kill. Fire
can warm, but too much can destroy; food can give health as well as steal it.
Scripture says it’s not what goes
into a man’s mouth that defiles him, it’s what comes out of his mouth,[13]
so even though we are FREE to drink wine, some feel drinking alcohol
of any description is sinful,[14]
so for them it
is sin and should be avoided.[15] So even though we are free to drink wine, we
should avoid doings so in public as it may cause those who are weak in their
faith to stumble. [16]
Those in leadership have special direction
from the scriptures; Congressmen shouldn’t drink too much[17]
and the
President should not drink at all.[18] Deacons can drink a little,[19]
but not at church services; with communion being the exception. Preachers can drink more than deacons,[20]
but not at church services; Baptist can’t drink at all, at least John the Baptist did not, but it seems OK for Presbyterians.[21] Actually
we are all FREE to drink in
moderation, although some denominations knowing the results of drunkenness,
forbid it.
Partaking of wine in church during
communion or the
Lord’s Supper is allowed.[22] It’s only a token of wine and is symbolic of
the blood of
Jesus Christ; in fact the Bible says to do it often. A quantity of
wine was always kept in the temple for ceremonies. We are urged to no longer be controlled by
our desires for sitting around social drinking, but to live the rest of our
life for the will of God.[23]
Vow of the Nazarene
If
you are moved by the Spirit to get closer to God, then you must
separate yourself from strong drink for whatever time is impressed on you; John
the Baptizer’s vow was for life. The
grape to the Nazarene is a symbol of temptation because symbolically it represents prosperity, leisure and the fullness of
life are connected to it.
VOW
OF THE NAZARENE: To make oneself
available to God; to be a spiritual leader.[24]
Dedication and separation for a period of
time to a priestly life.[25]
Abstinence from anything
from the vine, including, juice, raisins and the vine itself.[26]
Defilement avoidance: To avoid
touching a dead body, making them un-ceremonial defiled.[27]
Unimpaired strength: The cutting of hair was forbidden, it is a
symbol of strength.
Let’s take a tour - of excess
What does God say in the
scriptures about drinking in excess?
In
the very beginning we see Noah, God’s very own man, got drunk and started
taking off his clothes[28]
and in another scripture a father in a stupor has sex with his two daughters
and didn’t even remember it.[29]
Here are some of the characteristics of what happens
when you over indulge.
a) You will not know what you are doing, b) You’re eyes become red, c) and
you start feeling sorry for yourself. d) You begin to
complain and start foolish contentions and get hurt for no reason. e) You get beat up and don’t even know it.[30] f) You
imagine strange confusing things. [31] g) You become sick as a dog on a boat and h) when you wake up, all you want is another drink. So we are warned not to plan our day around HAPPY HOUR and the next concoction we can make.[32]
Stay away from friends
that are party animals whose activities center around drinking.[33]
Those in Authority should limit their
indulgence and not crave alcohol.[34]
Alcohol has now become America’s number
one legalized drug. Caution concerning
its use is woven throughout the scriptures.[35] Special
Note: There was a lot of wine
brought to the early church as a tithe and as an offering. This was NEW WINE, first fruits that was not fermented, but it
was also stored and as time went by it DID ferment.
News flash - A drunkard will not go to
Heaven.[36]
It’s in the Book.
King Solomon speaks from experience
King
Solomon felt a lot of mixed emotions about life as he tried everything
including abstaining from wine[37]
as well as getting “POTTED”. He
winds up commenting that wine is a favor from God and we can partake of it with
happiness.[38] He goes on to exhort us that in all our
actions we are to reverence God and imitate His concepts.[39]
The Take Away
The references to wine in the Bible indicate that wine was very common to their
everyday life and was part of their regular diet. Some scholars feel that it would have been
impossible to have wine that was unfermented during Biblical times as it was stored
for months in jars and wine skins and kept in cool cellars. Jesus could not have been tempted to drink “too much”
wine
unless he had the same temptation as we have.
Drinking wine is not a sin; drunkenness is a
sin; eating is not a sin, gluttony is a sin.
The Kingdom of God is not what we
eat or drink; it’s not what goes into our mouth that defiles us, it’s what
comes out. I had a Facebook friend
who OPENLY dressed me down about drinking alcohol;
she ended by saying she was just trying to be a GOOD
CHRISTIAN. This was an inference that those who did
drink alcohol were NOT GOOD CHRISTIANS. She confessed later to me that she was an alcoholic
and could not drink in moderation.
Being raised a STRICK
BAPTIST,
I saw my pastor standing in a line at a wedding for some punch, I told him he
was in the wrong line, that one had alcohol.
There was a pause as he hugged me and he changed lines; it was for my
sake he changed lines, not for his.
The Book says
while we are FREE to drink in
moderation if we choose, others may feel differently; that it’s a SIN therefore
they cannot drink. We are free to drink
alcohol in moderation, but not to the extent that it causes someone else to
stumble in their faith; so it seems advisable not to drink in public.
I feel pretty sure that this word study
will please only about half the folks that read it, the ones that drink. I just hope that it is controversial enough
that is will cause you to dig through God’s word for yourself to get your own
special revelation.
If I can get you excited enough to check
out God’s word for yourself, then this study has accomplished that which it was
sent to do. Selah
[1] 2 Samuel 16:2 – WINE REFRESHING -- 1 Timothy 5:23 – WINE USED IN ILLNESS
PREVENTION --
Luke 10:34 –
WINE CAN AID IN HEALING -- Proverbs 31:6-7 WINE A SEDATIVE FOR THE DYING
[2] Psalms 128:3 – Symbolic
of FRUITFULNESS
[3] Judges 9:13 – Symbolic of
HAPPYINESS
[4] Psalms 80:8-11 – Symbolic
of PROSPERITY
[5] Genesis 49:11-12 –
Symbolic of ABUNDANCE
AND HEALTH
[6] 1 Kings 4:25 – Symbolic
of SAFETY
[7] Isaiah 55:1-2 – Symbolic
of a SPIRITUAL BLESSING
[8] John 2:2-3 – Jesus turns
water into wine, His first recorded miracle
[9] John 9:4 – Jesus did the
works of the father
[10] John 2:10 – It was FERMINTED
[11] Luke 7:33-34 – Jesus
drank wine - Matthew 11:18-19 - The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and
they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a DRUNKARD, a friend of tax
collectors and sinners -- Genesis 1:31 – God created wine and said it was VERY good
[12] Hebrews 5:6 – Jesus was
of the order of Melchizedek -- Genesis
14:18-19 – Melchizedek served Abraham wine
[13] Matthew 15:10-11 – It’s not what goes into a man’s mouth that defiles him, it’s
what comes out of his mouth
[14] Romans 14:21-23 – If a
man thinks drinking WINE is
a sin; then for him IT IS SIN
[15] Romans 14:20-21 – DON’T DRINK IN
PUBLIC, it
could cause someone else to stumble.
[16] Ephesians 5:18 – DO NOT GET DRUNK
[17] Titus 1:6-8 – Congressmen
shouldn’t drink too much alcohol
[18] Proverbs 31:4-5 – The
president should not drink at all
[19] 1 Timothy 3:8 – Deacons
can drink a little -- Ezekiel 44:21 – But
not at church
[20] 1 timothy 3:2-3 –
Preachers can drink more than Deacons --
Leviticus 10:8-9 – But not at church services
[21] Luke 7:33 – Baptist can’t drink, but it seems OK for Presbyterians
[22] 1 Corenthians 11:25-26 - COMMUNION IS
THE EXCEPTION for
drinking wine in church
[23] 1 Peter 4:2-3 - SET YOUR MIND ON THE WILL OF GOD
[24] Luke 1:13-16 - I want to
be totally dedicated to the lord
[25] Ephesians 5:18 – Seek the
spirit of god
[26] Numbers 6:1-3 – If you
want more of god; be separate from wine
[27] 1 Corenthians 6:19-20 –
Our body is a temple of the Holy Spirit -- Revelation 1:5-6 – We are a kingdom
of priest -- 1 peter 2:5 – We are a royal priesthood -- 1 peter 2:9 – We are a
chosen people
[28] Genesis 9:20-22 – DON’T KNOW WHAT
YOU’RE DOING
[29] Genesis 19:33 – He was
not aware of it when he laid down with her; could not remember.
[30] Proverbs 20:1 – FUSSIN’ &
FIGHTIN’
[31] Proverbs23:29-35 – CONFUSION,
DEPRESSION, SICKNESS
[32] Isaiah 5:22 - Woe to
those who are heroes at drinking wine and champions at mixing drinks
[33] Proverbs 23:20-21 – DON’T HANG
AROUND PARTY ANIMALS --
Romans 13:12-14 – Don’t let it cross your mind to get drunk
[34] Isaiah 5:11 – DON’T RUN AFTER
BOOZE -- 1 Corenthians 6:9-11 – Don’t
be a drunkard; you have been sanctified
[35] Luke 21:34-36 – A drunk will stand before God condemned
[36]
Galatians 5:19-21 – WARNING
AGAIN; DON’T BE A DRUNKARD, you will not inherit the kingdom of God
[37] 1 Corenthians 8:13 –
Consider your neighbor when you consume alcohol that it not cause him to
stumble in his faith
[38] Ecclesiastes 9:7 – Enjoy what God has made -- Titus 2:1-3 – Enjoy wine in moderation -- 1 Corenthians 8:8-9 – We are not better nor worse for drinking in moderation -- Hebrews 4:14-15 – Jesus
was tempted by alcohol, He was tempted in every way, just as we are-yet
was without sin
[39] Romans 14:13-18 – The Kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and
drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy
Spirit -- Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 - The conclusion of the whole matter:
fear god, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man
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